If you are feeling pain on the bottom of your foot around where the heel begins that isn’t going away then chances are that you have plantar fasciitis. It is uncomfortable at the best of times and painful enough to affect your daily life in the worst.
Plantar fasciitis is common in people with flat feet, have gotten obese recently and work long hours on their feet. For these people and more, this is a problem that seems like it has no solution. Luckily, there are actually some things that you can do yourself to eradicate the pain from your feet.
In this article, we will go over several of the ways that you can deal with your plantar fasciitis.
Foot massage
Plantar fasciitis is caused by a tendon at the sole of your foot that gets very tight. Loosening it up is a good way to get it back to normal so it stops causing you discomfort. A foot massage is a soothing and effective way to help do this.
A complete massage of the entire foot is good even though the pain is generally focused around the arch. A lot of pain is caused by the surrounding muscles also getting tense so loosening them will go a long way toward feeling relief.
Not everybody has the luxury of a personal foot masseuse so you should look into an electric foot massager that can work while you sit and watch TV. A massager like the IS-4000i that works to loosen the tendon is your best option.
Shoe inserts
Your shoes are partly to blame for the pain you are experiencing. Whether you wear high heels or shoes without enough support, it is causing the tendon to move and tighten.
The way around this is to get special inserts for plantar fasciitis that are designed specifically to target the arch of your foot. These inserts have a lump at the very spot where your plantar fascia is to push it back up while you walk. Over time, this will reset the tendon and make it comfortable to walk again.
Use a tennis ball
In addition to using inserts, you can create the same effect when you aren’t walking or wearing shoes. Simply take a tennis ball and roll it under your foot using slight pressure. While you watch TV, you should do this on the affected foot for 10 minutes or so at the end of the day. More if you really feel like it needs it.
RICE method
RICE is an acronym that sums up the steps to take when you first start feeling the pain of plantar fasciitis.
The first thing to do is to Rest the foot that has it. Try to stay off of your feet as much as possible for a few days. Ice the area for around 20 minutes at a time. Do this a few times a day to keep the inflammation down. Compress the area to keep the swelling down after you’ve iced it down. Lastly, Elevate the foot at the end of the day to help keep the swelling down, too.
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